As governors, we urge you to sign S. 5, the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2007. The bill has passed both the Senate and the House with overwhelming bipartisan majorities and is supported by a majority of Americans, major medical and scientific associations, patient advocacy groups and leading universities and research institutions.

Last year you vetoed a similar bill, H.R. 810, continuing a policy that limits federal funding for stem cell research. This policy puts the United States at a competitive disadvantage in the global marketplace, but more importantly, it fails to recognize the vast potential that research using additional stem cell lines could hold for the millions of Americans suffering from debilitatingdiseases. We urge you to reconsider your position and sign S.5.This bill includes ethics guidelines regarding the use of stem cells that are more stringent than those the administration has put in place. It also provides support for all forms of stem cell research - adultand embryonic.

Nationwide, millions of Americans suffer from Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, diabetes, spinal cord injuries, multiple sclerosis, cancer and other diseases. Stem cell research holds the promise of unlocking cures to these diseases and countless others. The bill will allow scientists and researchersto access healthy, uncontaminated, new stem cell lines that are currently ineligible for federal funding.

Mr. President, to not sign this bill is to hinder research for cures to some of the most dreaded diseases, and we call on you to reverse your position. A bipartisan Congress is giving you an opportunity to help millions of Americans who will benefit from the medical progress derived from stem cell research. We support congressional efforts to do this and urge you to do the same.